Paddle-wheel.



No. 735,958. w. I .P-ATENTED AUG. 11, 1903.

' F. EXLINE.

PADDLE WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 3 1902.

N0 MODEL.

in!lllmiillllllllllllllllllfi Iiawnimw flank -Erlnw m: mums PETERS co.mom-umo. WASHINGTON o c UNITED STATES Patented August 11, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK EXLINE, OF GEDDES, SOUTH DAKOTA, ASSIGNOR TO VERTICAL PROPELLERCOMPANY, OF GEDDES, SOUTH DAKOTA, A CORPORA- TION OF SOUTH DAKOTA.

PADDLE-WH EEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 735,958, dated August11, 1903; Application filed November 3, 1902. Serial No. 129,827. (Nomodel.)

To alt whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK EXLINE, of Goddes, in the county of CharlesMix and State of South Dakota, have invented certain new and usefulImprovementsin Paddle-Wheels; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference markedthereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to paddle-wheels for steamboats and othernavigable Vessels; and it consists in the matters hereinafter set forth,and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a plan view showing two likewheels embodying my invention applied to a side-wheel boat. Fig. 2 is aside view of one of the wheels shown in Fig. 1.

First describing the wheels shown in Figs. 1 and 2, both wheels shown inFig. 1 being alike, A A designate two rotative lateral wheel memberswhich are arranged eccentrically with respect to each other. Theexterior side member A is mounted on the outer end portion of asupportingbar B, which is shaped or bent to give it an angular shape orL form and consists of a part B, which is parallel with the axes ofrotation of the wheel members, and a transverse part B which is arrangedat right angles to said axes of rotation. The said part B is rigidlyattached at its outer end to a horizontal support or beam 0 and isadapted to form a horizontal jour-.

nal, axle, or hearing for the said wheel memher A.

D indicates a transverse rotative drivingshaft located in the samehorizontal plane with the bearing portion B of the bar B. Said shaft isshown as mounted at the end adjacent to the wheel in a bearing-box d,attached to a rigid horizontal supporting beam or member 0', arrangedinside of and parallel with the beam 0, to which the bar B is attached.As herein shown, the driving-shaft -D gives movement to both of thepaddlewheels illustrated, and for this purpose is provided with acentral crank D, through which motion is transmitted thereto from anysuitable engine or motor. The horizontal supports or beams O O arelocated outside and inside of the paddle-Wheel and preferably closelyadjacent to the outer andinner members A A of said wheel. Said beams areshown as connected by cross-pieces c 0, so as to form therewithrectangular frames, which latter may, if desired, form part of thestructure or framework of the boat on which the paddle-wheels are used.

The inner wheel member A is mounted upon and rigidly attached to thedriving-shaft D outside of and preferably adjacent to the bearing d,said inner member A in this instance constituting the driving member ofthe wheel. The transverse member B of the supporting-bar B is arrangedhorizontally and extends from the part B to a point in alinement withthe shaft D, where it is provided with a bearing B which engages the endof said shaft D, which projects past or beyond the inner wheel member Afar enough to enter said bearing. Said bar B, through the rigidattachment of its outer end to the frame member or supporting-beam O andits engagement at its inner end with the outer end of the shaft D,serves to maintain the end of said shaft D accurately in position withrespect to the outer part B of said supporting-bar, on which the outermember A of the paddle-wheel turns.

E E designate connecting members, herein shown as hearing the form ofpaddle frames or trusses,which are located between the outer parts ofthe wheel members A A and have A pivotal connection at their outer andinner ends with said wheel members by means of oppositely-directedpivot-rods F F;

The pivot-rods F are rigidly secured to the outer margins of the wheelmember A and project therefrom toward the wheel member A, while thepivot-rods F are rigidly attached to said wheel member A and projecttoward the opposite wheel member A. Said pivot-rods are arrangedparallel with the axes of rotation of the wheel members and extend alongthe inner and outer ends of the paddle frame or trusses, which latterare arranged horizontally or parallel with the part B of thesupporting-bar B and are always held by the pivot-rods in a horizontalposition. Attached to the paddle frames or trusses E E are paddle-bladesG G, which extend downwardly from the same. The drawings show but oneblade on each paddle-frame, but a greater number may be used, ifdesired.

The paddle frames or trusses E are herein shown as made of rectangularform and as formed by means of side bars 6 e, the ends of which areprovided with bearing-apertures for engagement with the pivot-rods FF,which pivot-rods are adapted to turn freely in said bearing-apertures.The said side bars 6 e are shown as joined to each other by a rigidcross-bar e connecting them above the paddle-blades G and also byoblique braces or struts e.

The distance between the axes of the two pivot-rods engaging any one ofthe paddle frames or trusses is equal to the distance between thepivotal axes of the wheel members A and A, andthe pivot-rods for eachframe are located in a plane parallel with a plane passing through theaxes of said wheel members. It follows from this construction that whenone of the side members A is revolved the other member A will turn withit, and the two members will maintain the same relative position and allof the blades will remain in planes parallel with each other.

The paddle frames or trusses being provided with vertically-dependingblades it will be manifest that the said blades on the descending sideof the wheel will enter the water in a vertical position, while those onthe ascending side of the wheel will leave or emerge from the water alsoin a vertical position, so that said blades will not tend to lift thewater when leaving the same, but will act horizontally upon the water orin a manner to give a direct rearward pressure on the same as the wheelrevolves. It will of course he understood that the outer Wheel member Aturns freely on its bearing on the outer part of the supporting-bar B,and that rotary motion is transmitted thereto from the driving shaft tothe paddle frames or trusses connecting the two wheel members. This willbe made clear from an inspection of Fig. 2, from which it will be seenthat when the member A is rotated the paddle-frames at the top andbottom of the wheel will exert a pull or push upon the member A, so asto give to the two members exact correspondence of rotative movement.

An important advantage gained by the employment of the supporting-bar Bwhen so arranged is to afford a bearing for one of the eccentric wheelmembers and when provided with a bearing for the driving-shaft on whichthe other wheel member is mounted, for the reason that the said bar Bthus arranged 0ptional resistance and unequal wear, which would resultif the supports for the two wheel members were not thus rigidly held inposition with respect to each other.

I claim as my invention- 1. A wheel comprising two rotative membersarranged eccentrically with respect to each other, parallel connectingmembers located between and having pivotal connection with said rotativemembers, a stationary supporting-bar on which one of said two rotativemembers is mounted, and a rotative shaft on which the other memberismounted, said supporting-bar havinga rigid extension provided with ahearing which is engaged by the said shaft.

2. A paddle-wheel comprising two wheel members arranged eccentricallywith respect to each other, parallel connecting members 5 locatedbetween and pivotally connected with said wheel members, a stationarysupportingbar on which one of said wheel members is mounted, adriving-shaft to which the other member is attached, said supporting-barhaving a rigid extension provided with a hearing which is engaged by thesaid shaft, and supporting-beams or frame members at opposite sides ofthe wheel, one of which is provided with a bearing for said shaft and tothe other of which said supporting-bar is rigidly secured.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix mysignature, in presence of two witnesses, this 27th day of October, A. D.1902.

FRANK EXLINE.

